In a rather eyebrow-raising revelation, reported that Neera Tanden, previously the White House Staff Secretary, held the reins of Joe Biden’s autopen from October 2021 until May 2023, when she ascended to the White House Domestic Policy Council. During her closed-door testimony, Tanden confirmed her authority over the autopen but firmly denied any claims of misuse or manipulation of that power.
BREAKING: Ex-Biden Aide Neera Tanden Admits Under Oath to House Oversight Committee That She Controlled Joe Biden’s Autopen
The Washington Examiner reported that Tanden was granted the power to utilize the autopen and was responsible for managing the document flow to and from the president.
A significant new detail has emerged from her closed-door testimony. According to a press release from the Oversight Project, Tanden reportedly used the autopen without confirming with Biden that her actions were authorized. The release states:
“…she would send decision memos to Biden’s inner circle with no visibility of approval between sending the memo and receiving it back. Tanden’s testimony confirms that she affixed Biden’s signature onto presidential documents without direct knowledge that Biden authorized the given action.
“Given Biden’s clearly deteriorating condition and lack of capacity, it was incumbent on Tanden to actually confirm that Biden himself was capable of and actually making decisions. Instead, it appears that a close cabal of advisors were put between the autopen and the President.”
Mike Howell, President of the Oversight Project, discussed the implications of the autopen scandal with Chanel Rion on OANN’s Fine Point:
We’re going to learn that there were two types of people running the Biden White House.
The politburo where decisions were made and White House staff where decisions were implemented.
No one voted for the autopen to be President. @OANN @ChanelRion pic.twitter.com/VSvhYyxB80
— Oversight Project (@ItsYourGov) June 25, 2025
The Washington Examiner further revealed that Tanden “was also authorized to direct that autopen signatures be affixed to certain categories of documents” and that the autopen system she inherited from previous administrations functioned throughout her tenure as staff secretary.
In a recent statement, President Trump labeled the autopen debacle as “the biggest scandal outside the rigged 2020 election,” humorously noting that he was “not a big autopen person, fortunately.” He elaborated that the autopen is primarily used for responding to the “thousands of letters” from citizens, and that its use should ideally be limited to such scenarios.
Trump also commented on Biden’s policies, asserting that he “was never for open borders… transgender for everybody… men playing in women’s sports… frankly, I said it during the debate and I say it now, he didn’t have much of an idea what was going on.”
Back in January 2021, Trump ominously predicted that, “The 25th Amendment is of zero risk to me, but will come back to haunt Joe Biden and the Biden administration. As the expression goes, be careful what you wish for.”
Howell continued to express concerns regarding the 25th Amendment during his discussion with Rion:
Kamala Harris and the Biden Cabinet abdicated their duty to invoke the 25th Amendment, Section 4.
They knew Joe Biden was incapacitated but preferred it.
The autopen was a device to make the White House work without a President. @OANN @ChanelRion pic.twitter.com/JiXKDng8vK
— Oversight Project (@ItsYourGov) June 25, 2025
